I love the Land Rover Defender for many reasons, with a current-gen Defender 90 solidly in my “Must Buy When I Have Extra Money” list. But one of the reasons I love it so much is because you can get it with a bench seat up front. This isn’t just cool; it’s also super practical because you can seat up to six people in a two-door truck. Legacy automakers like Chevy, Ford, and General Motors also offer models with front bench seats—but what about the new kids on the block?
As it turns out, they’re also on board with front-bench seats. REO Industries, the Texas startup promising to bring back the “affordable American truck,” plans to equip its boxy, gas-powered, body-on-frame model with a front bench. And likewise, in an even more niche segment, Smart is looking to equip its future #2 model with a bench. The logic is that it makes the cabin feel “more spacious” while offering more versatility for cargo or passengers.
Scout Motors, VW’s electric venture that’s enjoyed a rollercoaster trajectory so far, is also bringing back the bench in both of its upcoming models, the Terra and the Travelers. However, by the looks of it, we’ll have to wait until “sometime in 2028” to see these in the flesh.
If you just have to have a vehicle with a bench seat and you don’t want to wait for REO, don’t want to/can’t buy a Smart, and don’t feel like waiting until 2028 for a Scout, then you can buy a Chevy Tahoe/Suburban today, as well as a Silverado (1500 and HD), Ram (1500 and HD), and Ford F-150. You can also buy a pre-owned Defender because, sadly, JLR stopped offering the bench seat here in the U.S. about two or three years ago.
If you really think about it, a front bench makes so much more sense than having two individual seats. You can still easily build a folding center armrest/console into the backrest, giving customers the option of storage or a jump seat. Now, I’m sure some automotive designer or engineer is probably cussing me out right now because what seems simple to me is probably the opposite to them, but hey, whatever.
With just a handful of models with front bench seats available on the market, I wouldn’t exactly say they’re making a comeback—but I’d definitely say that we’re headed in the right direction.
Would you opt for a front beach if it were an option?